Research disruption during PhD studies and its impact on mental health: Implications for research and university policy.

Research policy observers are increasingly concerned about the impact of the disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic on university research. Yet we know little about the effect of this disruption, specifically on PhD students, their mental health, and their research progress. This study drew from survey responses of UK PhD students during the Covid-19 pandemic. We explored evidence of depression and coping behaviour (N = 1780), and assessed factors relating to demographics, PhD characteristics, Covid-19-associated personal circumstances, and significant life events that could explain PhD student depression during the research disruption (N = 1433). The majority of the study population (86%) reported a negative effect on their research progress during the pandemic. Results based on eight mental health symptoms (PHQ-8) showed that three in four PhD students experienced significant depression. Live-in children and lack of funding were among the most significant factors associated with developing depression. Engaging in approach coping behaviours (i.e., those alleviating the problem directly) related to lower levels of depression. By assessing the impact of research disruption on the UK PhD researcher community, our findings indicate policies to manage short-term risks but also build resilience in academic communities against current and future disruptions.

Protocol for a qualitative study to explore acceptability, barriers and facilitators of the implementation of new teleophthalmology technologies between community optometry practices and hospital eye services.

INTRODUCTION: Novel teleophthalmology technologies have the potential to reduce unnecessary and inaccurate referrals between community optometry practices and hospital eye services and as a result improve patients' access to appropriate and timely eye care. However, little is known about the acceptability and facilitators and barriers to the implementations of these technologies in real life. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: A theoretically informed, qualitative study will explore patients' and healthcare professionals' perspectives on teleophthalmology and Artificial Intelligence Decision Support System models of care. A combination of situated observations in community optometry practices and hospital eye services, semistructured qualitative interviews with patients and healthcare professionals and self-audiorecordings of healthcare professionals will be conducted. Participants will be purposively selected from 4 to 5 hospital eye services and 6-8 affiliated community optometry practices. The aim will be to recruit 30-36 patients and 30 healthcare professionals from hospital eye services and community optometry practices. All interviews will be audiorecorded, with participants' permission, and transcribed verbatim. Data from interviews, observations and self-audiorecordings will be analysed thematically and will be informed by normalisation process theory and an inductive approach. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Ethical approval has been received from London-Bromley research ethics committee. Findings will be reported through academic journals and conferences in ophthalmology, health services research, management studies and human-computer interaction.

mHealth and global mental health: still waiting for the mH2 wedding?

BACKGROUND: Two phenomena have become increasingly visible over the past decade: the significant global burden of disease arising from mental illness and the rapid acceleration of mobile phone usage in poorer countries. Mental ill-health accounts for a significant proportion of global disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and years lived with disability (YLDs), especially in poorer countries where a number of factors combine to exacerbate issues of undertreatment. Yet poorer countries have also witnessed significant investments in, and dramatic expansions of, mobile coverage and usage over the past decade. DEBATE: The conjunction of high levels of mental illness and high levels of mobile phone usage in poorer countries highlights the potential for "mH(2)" interventions--i.e. mHealth (mobile technology-based) mental health interventions--to tackle global mental health challenges. However, global mental health movements and initiatives have yet to engage fully with this potential, partly because of scepticism towards technological solutions in general and partly because existing mH(2) projects in mental health have often taken place in a fragmented, narrowly-focused, and small-scale manner. We argue for a deeper and more sustained engagement with mobile phone technology in the global mental health context, and outline the possible shape of an integrated mH(2) platform for the diagnosis, treatment, and monitoring of mental health. SUMMARY: Existing and developing mH(2) technologies represent an underutilised resource in global mental health. If development, evaluation, and implementation challenges are overcome, an integrated mH2 platform would make significant contributions to mental healthcare in multiple settings and contexts.

A case for safety leadership team training of hospital managers.

BACKGROUND: Delivering safe patient care remains an elusive goal. Resolving problems in complex organizations like hospitals requires managers to work together. Safety leadership training that encourages managers to exercise learning-oriented, team-based leadership behaviors could promote systemic problem solving and enhance patient safety. Despite the need for such training, few programs teach multidisciplinary groups of managers about specific behaviors that can enhance their role as leadership teams in the realm of patient safety. PURPOSE: The aims of this study were to describe a learning-oriented, team-based, safety leadership training program composed of reinforcing exercises and to provide evidence confirming the need for such training and demonstrating behavior change among management groups after training. METHODS: Twelve groups of managers from an academic medical center based in the Northeast United States were randomly selected to participate in the program and exposed to its customized, experience-based, integrated, multimodal curriculum. We extracted data from transcripts of four training sessions over 15 months with groups of managers about the need for the training in these groups and change in participants' awareness, professional behaviors, and group activity. FINDINGS: Training transcripts confirmed the need for safety leadership team training and provided evidence of the potential for training to increase targeted behaviors. The training increased awareness and use of leadership behaviors among many managers and led to new routines and coordinated effort among most management groups. Enhanced learning-oriented leadership often helped promote a learning orientation in managers' work areas. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: Team-based training that promotes specific learning-oriented leader behaviors can promote behavioral change among multidisciplinary groups of hospital managers.